Between the Lines, (Fifth Impression 2020) (Paperback)

By Kuldip Nayar

Between the Lines is a classic among books on politics. It set a new trend in reporting which uncovered the dark, vicious conspiracies behind the events. Never before had reporting been so candid and so revealing. The author had benefited from a ringside view which he had in the sixties and the seventies as Press Officer to Home Minister, Govind Ballabh Pant and his successor, Lal Bahadur Shastri.

For the first time, you can read the full story about why the switch over to Hindi did not take place and why English and Hindi were both declared as link languages. The book also has a diary of the author on day-to-day developments of China’s war against India in 1962, the debacle of our armed forces and helplessness of government at New Delhi.

Written in readable, easy style, the book also describes the pulls and pressures for rupee’s devaluation which turned out to be a disaster for the nation. The author, privy to the wrangles within the Congress on the succession to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, tells why Shastri was chosen in preference to Mrs Indira Gandhi and then why she got the position and not Morarji Desai. Many other things come to light - such things which will add to your knowledge of Indian politics. The passage of time has only made mysteries more mysterious, simple issues more tangled and political plots more intriguing.

A veteran journalist and former member of Parliament, Kuldip Nayar is India's most well-known and widely syndicated journalist. He was born in Sialkot in 1923 and educated at Lahore University before migrating to Delhi with his family at the time of Partition. He began his career in the Urdu newspaper Anjam and after a spell in the USA worked as information officer of Lal Bahadur Shastri and Govind Ballabh Pant.

He eventually became Resident Editor of the Statesman and Managing Editor of the Indian news agency, UNI. He corresponded for The Times for twenty-five years and later served as Indian high commissioner to the UK during the V.P. Singh government. His stand for press freedom during the Emergency, when he was detained; his commitment to better relations between India and Pakistan, and his role as a human rights activist have won him respect and affection in both countries. Author of more than a dozen books, his weekly columns are read across South Asia.

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